Well – in order to head any further emails on the subject I give you this link.
UPC Database

I don’t know who the owner of the site is, but he claims collecting this information is a hobby of his. Talk about an obscure hobby :-) But hey, you have to admire him. I’ve used his site many times myself. He’s got over 1.1 million items indexed in his database so far. Makes me wonder what percentage of the total number of barcoded items this really is. Maybe you can even enter your own items on his site.

Bar Code Scanner made by Hand Held Products Inc US $25.00 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 19:01:14 PST   | Watch this Item

Hand Held Products 4800ISR051C0F00 4800i 2D Industrial US $127.34 Auction Ends: Friday Mar-12-2010 0:36:03 PST   | Watch this Item

Hand Held Products iBase1 Bardcode Scanner and Terminal US $2.99 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Friday Mar-12-2010 11:00:24 PST   | Watch this Item

Hand Held Products IT3800 Barcode Scanner w/Wedge US $39.99 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Friday Mar-12-2010 13:59:56 PST   | Watch this Item

Hand Held Products CAMERA BarCode Scanner Reader 4600 US $99.99 Auction Ends: Saturday Mar-13-2010 9:49:01 PST   | Watch this Item

If you’re really into barcodes and you’ve got nothing better to do you should have a listen. That is if you can get past the 8 billion ummmms this guy says. But I give him credit. He’s a nerdy German guy that speaks pretty good English. Kind of sounds like Arnold Schwarzenegger talking about barcodes – otherwise known as the barco-nator :-)

I certainly don’t advocate doing any of the things he’s done. But I’ll definitely start looking at barcodes in a whole new light. For all the years I worked as a support engineer for barcode scanners and data collection systems, I never even considered any of the things this guy is talking about. If I find any vulnerabilities I’ll post them to this blog someday.

So kill some time, get a laugh now and then, and even think about barcodes in a whole new light. This video should be especially helpful for people designing systems that utilize barcodes.

Symbol Barcode scanner ls2208 SR20007 US $20.00 (1 Bid) Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 6:47:00 PST   | Watch this Item

Motorola / Symbol LS2208 USB LASER Barcode scanner US $164.00 Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 9:19:14 PST   | Watch this Item

Motorola / Symbol LS2208 USB LASER Barcode scanner US $164.00 Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 11:49:12 PST   | Watch this Item

Symbol LS2208-SR20001 Barcode Scanner & Intellistand WT US $76.00 (6 Bids) Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 21:10:11 PST   | Watch this Item

5 sets B.New Symbol Barcode Scanner LS2208 w USB&Stand US $425.00 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 22:41:23 PST   | Watch this Item

Along with the laser engine the scanner has an area imager. The laser engine sits on top of the area imager. The area imager is a 752 pixel wide x 480 pixel high sensor. It’s actually old technology, but quite effective for fast barcode reading. Remember an area imager allows us to read 2D barcodes (Data Matrix, Aztec, QR Code, PDF417) and also capture images if needed. You wouldn’t be able to capture a high resolution image, but typically high resolution images are not required in the applications where these barcode scanners are being used.

Another unique feature of the 9808 is the dual trigger. Symbol has long used a 2 finger trigger option. They’ve taken advantage of this in the 9808 by putting two trigger switches in. The trigger button is on a rocker type switch. Pull the upper part of the trigger for trigger A and the bottom part of the trigger for trigger B. The triggers can be programmed independently to activate either the laser engine or the area imager. For example: If you wanted the primary scan engine to be the laser, you could program the upper trigger switch to turn the laser on and the lower switch to turn the area imager on. You can also program the switches to activate the same scan engine. Basically the trigger switches are totally independent and programmable.

The scanner is also available with an RFID reader. Just like the laser engine and the area imager, the RFID reader can be controlled via the trigger.

The 9808 also has EAS deactivation. EAS is Electronic Article Surveillance. You know those tags that are affixed to products you buy in the store and cause the alarm system to beep if you walk out the door without deactivating them? Those are EAS tags. Basically the scanner has a coil in it that when driven at a certain frequency will blow those tags so they don’t set off the alarm when you walk through the security gates.

Symbol has once again been the first to market with a new technology. In this case a hybrid laser scanner and area imager. It seems to me this would be a fairly expensive scanner. A laser engine and an area imager, plus two trigger switches, RFID, and EAS all available. I don’t know yet what options are available together. I’m sure you don’t have to get all options in a single scanner if you don’t want them. But they do all have a laser, area imager and two trigger switches at a bare minimum. It has to be somewhat expensive with all the hardware packed in this.

Check out the 9808 at Motorola 9808

LS3408FZAK0200Z Symbol LS 3408-FZ - Barcode scanner - US $187.45 Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 3:34:36 PST   | Watch this Item

Barcode Scanner New In Box With Instructions "Symbol" US $64.95 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 4:18:22 PST   | Watch this Item

Symbol wireless barcode scanner LS 4071 LS4071 USB US $59.00 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 5:02:58 PST   | Watch this Item

Lot of 4 Symbol SPT1800 Barcode Scanner w/ Charger US $249.99 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 6:19:45 PST   | Watch this Item

Symbol LS9208 Omni SR10007NSWW Barcode Scanner US $104.95 Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 6:26:53 PST   | Watch this Item

The question you need to ask yourself is, “How do I know what kind of barcode scanner I need and how do I know what I purchase is worth the price paid?”.

If you’re looking for scanners on eBay then chances are you’re not a Walmart or a Target :-) You’re a smaller establishment that needs one or two barcode scanners for your point of sale system. Or you’re just looking for some spares in case one of your older scanners breaks down. I’m here to say that buying scanners on eBay is just like buying anything else. You need to do your research before you make a purchase. If you do your research and know exactly what you need then chances are you can find it at a very good price on eBay. Barcode scanners are not a consumer item. So unlike consumer items on eBay where the price is typically no better than what you can get at a brick and mortar store, you can get a good brand name barcode scanner on eBay for a really good deal.

So what are some of the things to look for when you’re considering buying a scanner on eBay? There are a number of things you need to consider. I’ll list a few then go into more details below.

1. Tethered or cordless.
2. Interface from barcode scanner to PC.
3. Imager or laser based.
4. 2D or 1D barcode scanner.
5. Working range of barcode scanner.

Tethered or cordless?  You have the option to get a scanner that has a cable connected to the bottom of it and the other end of the cable connects directly to the PC.  Or you can get a cordless unit.  Cordless barcode scanners have a base station that connects to the PC with a cable.  Then the barcode scanner communicates to the base station wirelessly.  It works a lot like a cordless telephone.  Newer cordless systems are bluetooth from the barcode scanner to the cradle.

What about the interface?  If you read a previous post of mine it explains the different types of interfaces available in just about every barcode scanner.  Most barcode scanners support all the interfaces.  You would just need to scan a programming barcode to enable the interface you need.  But just to re-iterate what I stated in that post – USB keyboard is probably the most popular interface being used today.  It’s completely plug and play.  You set the scanner up for the USB keyboard interface and then plug the cable into a USB port on the PC running Windows or Linux.  The correct driver will load automatically.  Then whenever you scan a barcode, the barcode data will be inserted at the point of your cursor on the PC.  Here’s a link to my post about interfaces. Barcode scanner interfaces .

Do you want an imager based barcode scanner or a laser based scanner?  Imager based scanners come in two types.  Area imagers and linear imagers.  You would use an area imager if you plan on reading 2D or 1D barcodes.  A linear imager can only read 1D barcodes.  So why would you even bother with a linear imager if a 2d imager can read both 2d and 1D barcodes?   At this point in time linear imagers are less expensive and offer a greater working range than area imagers.  The other type is a laser barcode scanner.  Laser barcode scanners are very similar to linear imagers.  They can only read linear barcodes.

To furthur elaborate on the difference between 2D and 1D barcodes.  2D barcodes look like the Data Matrix shown here.

Linear barcodes are the types of codes you see on pretty much every single product at a grocery store.  They can’t hold nearly the amount of data that a 2D barcode can hold, nor are they as error tolerant.  But they are easy to read and can be read with a very inexpensive barcode scanner.

Finally, working range needs to be considered.  Working range is defined as the farthest point at which a barcode can be read minus the nearest point at which a barcode can be read.  For example:  A barcode can be read out to a maximum distance of 18 inches for a particular barcode scanner.  That same barcode can be read at a near distance of 2 inches with the same barcode scanner.  The working distance is then 18 inches – 2 inches = 16 inches of working range.  The point that needs to be taken away from this message is that linear barcode scanners always have a better working range than 2D barcode scanners.  So that’s another point that needs to be considered when purchasing a barcode scanner.  Most applications do not require the longer working range of a 1D barcode scanner.  But some do.

I’ve listed some of the things you should really consider when purchasing a barcode scanner.  If you know what you want there is no reason you can’t purchase it off eBay.  You’ll get a really good price.  And barcode scanners are very durable.  They do not break often.

If you have any questions at all about what to look for in a barcode scanner, or if you find a scanner on eBay and you want my advice please don’t hesitate to email. Below is a selection of scanners available on eBay. Click one of the auctions to see more.

Hand Held Products IT3800 Barcode Scanner w/Wedge US $39.99 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Friday Mar-12-2010 13:59:56 PST   | Watch this Item

Hand Held Products CAMERA BarCode Scanner Reader 4600 US $99.99 Auction Ends: Saturday Mar-13-2010 9:49:01 PST   | Watch this Item

LX IT HANDHELD PRODUCTS 3800 3800LX-12 BARCODE SCANNER US $140.99 Auction Ends: Saturday Mar-20-2010 11:55:35 PDT   | Watch this Item

NEW Hand Held Products Barcode Scanner Stand US $27.99 Auction Ends: Monday Mar-22-2010 18:05:14 PDT   | Watch this Item

Honeywell Hand Held Products Barcode Scanner Stand US $27.99 Auction Ends: Monday Mar-22-2010 18:05:17 PDT   | Watch this Item

Barcodes are being used extensively in healthcare. And they do help reduce the the number of deaths and injuries. But many healthcare operating systems allow the user to bypass the barcode reading if there is a problem reading the barcode with the barcode scanner. It’s these types of system overrides that need to be addressed and improved upon. The barcodes are in place, now the underlying issues need to be fixed.

One area that is in need of serious improvement is the patient wristband. How many people get admitted to a healthcare facility per year around the world? It’s hard to find an exact number. Do a search in Google on the number of hospital admissions per year and the numbers returned are staggering. For every one of those admissions there’s a wristband being used. In the United States a typical wristband might look like this.

Notice the linear barcode to the right of the patient information. It’s that barcode that gets scanned many times per day. When the patient gets transferred to another department for testing the bacode is scanned. If medication is administered the barcode gets scanned. There are many instances when that barcode gets scanned throughout the day.

These linear barcodes are very small and difficult to read, even when printed perfectly. Rarely have I seen one printed perfectly. Many of the printers simply cannot print perfect barcodes this small without constant maintenance. When the barcodes aren’t printed perfectly the barcode scanners cannot read them. When the barcode can’t be read the nurse or doctor must rely on manual data entry. With manual data entry comes errors. The healthcare operating system allows manual data entry as an override to reading the barcode. What can they do? If the barcode scanners can’t read the barcode the patient data needs to get entered somehow.

A new design for the patient wristband has been proposed and is being used in more and more healthcare facilities. The design looks like this.

You’ll see the original linear barcode is still present. But there is also a series of redundant Aztec 2D barcodes that cover nearly the entire wristband. Each Aztec barcode contains the exact same data. That means that no matter what position the wristband is in at least one of the Aztec barcodes can be read by the barcode scanner. If a patient is sleeping and the linear barcode is not visible the nurse would need to move the patient’s arm to read the barcode. Not with the 2D barcode. There will always be a barcode visible.

The 2D barcodes also have built in error correction meaning the barcode can be slightly damaged and is still easily read by the barcode scanner.

The only disadvantage is the Aztec barcode can only be read by a 2D barcode scanner. If the facility is not yet upgraded to 2D barcode scanners they can still use the older linear barcode scanner to read the linear barcode.

In summary the use of 2D barcodes on patient wristbands provides some real advantages over linear barcodes. It’s this type of thinking combined with the use of newer technology that will greatly improve patient safety in healthcare facilities.

Hand Held Products IT3800 Barcode Scanner w/Wedge US $39.99 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Friday Mar-12-2010 13:59:56 PST   | Watch this Item

Hand Held Products CAMERA BarCode Scanner Reader 4600 US $99.99 Auction Ends: Saturday Mar-13-2010 9:49:01 PST   | Watch this Item

• PS/2 – If your computer has a PS/2 style keyboard connecter you can “wedge” the scanner between your keyboard and your PC.  In fact this style connection was typically called PS/2 wedge. To make the connection you disconnect your keyboard from your computer. The cable connected to the scanner will have two PS/2 style ends. One female and one male. Simply connect your keyboard to the female end of the scanner cable and connect the male end of the scanner cable to your computer’s PS/2 keyboard port. Don’t mistakenly plug the scanner into the mouse port.  Once you have the scanner connected, each time you scan the barcode with the barcode scanner, the data will be placed at the point of your cursor.

• USB keyboard emulation – By far the most common type of connection today is USB keyboard emulation.   Simply plug the scanner cable into an open USB connector on your computer.  If you’re running Microsoft Windows or Linux the USB keyboard driver needed for the scanner is part of the operating system.  That driver will load automatically when you plug the scanner in if the computer is powered on.  Or it will load when the next time the computer is powered up.  Just like the PS/2 connection, when you scan a barcode the data from the barcode scanner will be placed at the point of your cursor.

• RS232 – Most newer laptop computers and many desktop computers no longer have an RS232 connecter.  RS232 is a communication protocol.  This post is not a tutorial for RS232.  Just suffice it to say that if you use this connection type both the barcode scanner and the host computer must be setup with the same communication parameters.  They have to speak the same language.  Plus the application you’re scanning into will need to support getting data from an RS232 port.  Not all applications have this capability.  If you’re unsure I recommend you speak with your application provider to find out if your application supports RS232.  The 9 pin connector shown below is the most popular RS232 connector type.

• USB serial port emulation – This scanner interface is similar to RS232.  The difference being USB serial port emulation uses the USB port and not the RS232 connector type.  It’s the same USB port that is used for USB keyboard emulation.  USB serial port emulation creates a virtual serial port on your computer.  If using this interface, just as with RS232, your application must be able to get data from a serial port.  Many applications do not support this.  Also the driver for USB serial port emulation is not included with the operating system.  You must get the driver from the scanner manufacturer.  You can usually download it from their website.

These are four very common barcode scanner connection types.  They are certainly not the only connection types.  There are also connections for IBM cash registers and many other types of terminals.  Now there is even wireless connections using Bluetooth.

If you have questions on connecting a scanner please email me.

LS3408FZAK0200Z Symbol LS 3408-FZ - Barcode scanner - US $187.45 Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 3:34:36 PST   | Watch this Item

Barcode Scanner New In Box With Instructions "Symbol" US $64.95 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 4:18:22 PST   | Watch this Item

So I did some research online and actually found a free Code 3 of 9 font that handles spaces. Now that same information encoded in a second barcode looks like this.

Now that’s a legal barcode and one that is easily read by any scanner. There is one catch with the font though. In order to encode the space, you need to use the exclamation point (!) and not the space bar. So keep that in mind – if you need a space, type in an exclamation point. I don’t know why that is. Maybe someday i’ll look into it further. But I’m unable to find any free Code 3 of 9 font that can encode a space using the space bar.

The free font I found can be downloaded at Free Code 3 of 9 font download

First thing to keep in mind is most people call the symbology code 39. Not code 3 of 9. Code 3 of 9 is the official name, but typically the “of” is dropped and the name is shortened to code 39. I’d go into more details on the actual configuration and specifications of the code, but no sense in duplicating what others have already said. Here’s a couple good websites with good details about code 39.
Wikipedia Code 39
IDAutomation Code 39 FAQ

Regarding start and stop characters for code 39. All code 39 barcodes are supposed to start and stop with the same character. That character is an asterisk (*). The asterisk character is not allowed to be used anywhere else in the barcode. Although I have seen people do it. But we won’t go into that now. They did it wrong, so please, no asterisks in your code 39 data string. When you build a barcode with a barcode building program like B-Coder from TAL Technologies, the asterisks are automatically added as the start and stop characters. When you use a code 39 barcode font in a program like Microsoft Word or Excel, the start and stop characters do NOT get added automatically. You need to add them as part of the data string. If I was using Word and wanted to enter the data string 123456, I would actually type it in as *123456*. If you don’t put the asterisks as the first and last characters, no barcode scanner will read your codes. The barcode scanner needs to see the asterisks as the first and last characters.

The first 5 black bars and the last 5 black bars will look the same on ALL code 39 barcodes. Some might be taller and some might be fatter, but the patter will always be the same. If you don’t see a pattern like what I’ve shown in the below image, then your code 39 barcode is generated incorrectly.

You don’t actually see the asterisks as part of the human readable when you use a barcode printing program. But you will see them if you use a code 39 font in Word or Excel.

Always keep this in mind – if you’re printing code 39 barcodes from a barcode font and your barcode scanner won’t read them, there is a 99.9% chance that you’ve left the start and stop characters off the barcode.

Bar Code Scanner made by Hand Held Products Inc US $25.00 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 19:01:14 PST   | Watch this Item

Hand Held Products 4800ISR051C0F00 4800i 2D Industrial US $127.34 Auction Ends: Friday Mar-12-2010 0:36:03 PST   | Watch this Item

Hand Held Products iBase1 Bardcode Scanner and Terminal US $2.99 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Friday Mar-12-2010 11:00:24 PST   | Watch this Item

Hand Held Products IT3800 Barcode Scanner w/Wedge US $39.99 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Friday Mar-12-2010 13:59:56 PST   | Watch this Item

Hand Held Products CAMERA BarCode Scanner Reader 4600 US $99.99 Auction Ends: Saturday Mar-13-2010 9:49:01 PST   | Watch this Item

What exactly is encoded on that barcode? Well, let’s take a look. Below is a scan of a NYS sample drivers license into Notepad.
@

AAMVA36001001DL00270249DL
DAADOE@JOHN@B@3
DAG2892 TANNER RD
DAIWEEDSPORT
DAJNY
DAK13166
DAQ298665337
DBB19511221
DBD20031211
DBA20111221
DARD
DAS
DAT
DBC1
DAU508
DAYBR
DBK
DBH

All that data is taken directly from a USB keyboard connected barcode scanner. What you don’t see are the non-printable or control characters that are included in the drivers license. Those can be seen if you’re scanning into a serial application instead of a USB keyboard type application like I did.

NYS uses the suggested AAMVA formatting for their licenses. This simply means they chose to adhere to the recommendations put forth by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Admininstrators or AAMVA. All the data I’m talking about above is available for free from their site in the specification. So I’m not telling anyone anything that isn’t already freely downloadable. The AAMVA website is available here – www.aamva.org.

You can see all the pertinent data that’s encoded in the drivers license barcode.  Name, address, date of birth, license number, expiration date etc.  It’s all in human readable format.  If you’ve got a 2D barcode scanner you can scan the data directly into Notepad and see the same thing I’ve just shown you above. 

What good is the data?  Think about it…you want to buy cigarettes or alcohol?  Your date of birth is encoded in the license.  That means the seller of the goods just needs to scan your license into their application and the application, with the right algorithm, can extract your birthdate then do a calculation based on today’s date and get your exact age.  It’s much faster than a cashier trying to verify by looking at your license and trying to calculate the age.  Or many people have an easy time of modifying the birthdate on the license.  They would have a harder time changing the barcode.  It’s not impossible but harder than simply changing the date on the license. 

Another use is instant credit apps.  How many times have you wanted to sign up for that store credit card so you could get 30% off but realized it takes forever to process the application because somebody has to fill out all the data?  Not now, all the operator needs to do is scan your drivers license to automatically fill out the form electronically.  It takes seconds instead of minutes. 

The last application I’ll talk about, and it’s getting bigger all the time, is for Methamphetamine laws.  As you probably know many shady characters are buying over the counter cold medications and using them to make Meth.  At this point in time their is no way to control how much of this medication somebody buys.  Many places have a notebook in which they will write down your name if you buy some.  Then if you come back to the store they have to look in the notebook to see when the last time was that you purchased it.  Very time consuming and there’s nothing that prevents you from going to their sister store down the road and buying more.  Now some of the major pharmacies are using barcode scanners to scan drivers licenses and sending that data to a store database.  That way all the stores are tied together so you would not be able to simply go from store to sister store to purchase over the counter cold medicine.  Eventually there will be a national database that tracks everyone everytime they purchase cold medications that contains pseudaphadrine.

The AAMVA has their specification.  And they have a few different revisions of it.  So data between states might be slightly different.  Plus the AAMVA format is only a “recommended” format.  There is nothing that says a state must use the format.  A state can do anything they want.  And that’s the reason that not all states follow the AAMVA format.  Georgia is totally encrypted.  A scanner will still read the Georgia license, but the data that is sent back to the PC is garbage – unless you have the decryption routine from Georgia.  North Carolina was the same way.  But their encryption routine has been broken and they’ve now adopted the AAMVA format.  I think Texas only has a linear barcode on their license.  Last time I knew Texas had a law that prevented anyone, example: retailer, from saving drivers license data about a customer. Although if there isn’t a 2D barcode on the back of the license, then the only data that could possibly be on the license would be the drivers license number encoded in the linear barcode. And if it is just the drivers license number, then somebody would need to have access to a database of all licenses for that number to be of any use. I’m sure law enforcement has access to the database, but no non-govermental agencies would have access to the database.   So don’t be a store owner trying to save drivers license data in Texas. As often as they fry people down in Texas you’ll probably go to the electric chair ;-)

If you think getting data from a drivers license could be beneficial to you their are a few ways to do it.  You can write your own PC based algorithm to parse out all the data.  That would be quite a task.  Their is a company called Positive Access (www.positiveaccess.com) that provides software tools you can integrate into your application and let them handle the parsing.  The good thing about this is they provide you with updates as states change their encoding schemes.  Finally their is barcode scanner based parsing.  Honeywell Scanning and Mobility and Motorola both offer solutions for parsing drivers license barcodes directly on the scanners and outputting the data as you need it.  Be sure to check them out.

Happy Scanning!  :-)

LS3408FZAK0200Z Symbol LS 3408-FZ - Barcode scanner - US $187.45 Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 3:34:36 PST   | Watch this Item

Barcode Scanner New In Box With Instructions "Symbol" US $64.95 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 4:18:22 PST   | Watch this Item

10 Lot Metrologic MS6720 MS 6720 POS Barcode Scanner US $44.99 (1 Bid) Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 4:58:51 PST   | Watch this Item

Symbol wireless barcode scanner LS 4071 LS4071 USB US $59.00 (0 Bid) Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 5:02:58 PST   | Watch this Item

WIRELESS BARCODE SCANNER USB LS 4071 LS4071 COMPLETE US $139.00 Auction Ends: Wednesday Mar-10-2010 5:17:45 PST   | Watch this Item